Overnight last night I self published my 16th & 17th photobooks, titled: TimeFrame 2 and TimeFrame 3. They are, as the name clearly suggests the 2nd and 3rd volumes in a series I have called TimeFrame. The intention behind the TimeFrame books is to capture a set period in time, and all the best photographs I have produced in that time (including those shot many months, or even years, earlier now taken out of the archives and polished up ready for sharing online).
TimeFrame volume 1 covered a period of 13 months, from April 2010 to April 2011. TimeFrame...
I am a big fan of minimalist photography. Images that take full advantage of negative space, contain just a few visual elements, and exude a feeling of calm. It's a technique that I haven't tried very often, but I'm kinda in the market for trying new things (what with December's "Challenges" not too far away). Anyway, here's a triptych of minimalist shots taken during this morning's foggy start.
Earlier in the year I visited Hay-on-Wye, during the world-famous literary festival. Hay-on-Wye itself is a small town packed full to bursting with bookshops - and when I say full, I mean full! Almost every shop on every street is a bookshop, it's a book lovers paradise. During the Festival (the Glastonbury of Books) Hay is also packed full to bursting with people, and street performers. And so we come to the reason for this blog post - The Clown.
I have no idea what his name is, but he was an impressively agile French clown (I saw him feed himself through a tennis...
In recent weeks I have purchased a few bits and pieces to go in my camera bag, including two new lenses for my Canon EOS 7D.
Firstly there was 50mm 1.8, a tiny slip of a lens that's fun to use and playfully rewarding. Then there came the 70 - 200mm f/4 USM, my first "L" lens (you know, the white/beige ones that you see the professionals using, with the "red ring"). The build quality of this lens is excellent, the images are sharp, and with a zoom range of 70 - 200mm it's perfect as an all-rounder.
I am very pleased with my recent purchases, and whilst I appreciate...
This shot is an experiment in colour and composition - and whilst it may look as if I've spent several hours in Photoshop, the truth it is was a reasonably quick and simple edit: From cropping tighter in on the Lion, through to draining the colour out of the background (and a bit of touching up here and there in-between). As is obvious from the title of this post, the aim was to create an image that felt very cold, that contained a tangible chill.
Details:
Focal Length: 328mm
Aperture: f/6.3
Shutter Speed: 1/200
ISO: 800
Whilst I usually like to try to keep...
Photography is, as I'm sure most of you already know, something that's either in the blood, or it isn't. If the answer to the question "why do you take photographs?" comes as easily to you as breathing, then you'll understand what I'm talking about. If, however, you couldn't answer that question instantly, and there have been times when you stop and ask yourself - what next? Then I may just know who is sitting on your shoulder...
I'm going to make a large assumption now, please forgive me if what I'm about to say doesn't accurately describe you (but I'm betting for some, I'm quite...
Autumn is a naturally photogenic season: the frosty mornings, the leaves changing colour, the low-angled sunlight. It all adds up to a few months of tempting photographic challenges. There's one thing that any self-respecting keen amateur photographer (srkap?) seeks to add to his or her portfolio and that's a macro shot of a leaf turning from green to golden-brown. Not wishing to let down any other srkaps out there (ok, I'm beginning to think that particular acronym many not actually catch on) I have uploaded my leaf shot for this year.
As Autumn is something of an annual...
I've experimented with logos today, trying to work out a quick, simple, recognisable logo for Needlemind Photography. It's not that easy to do. The desired image must be clean, clear, concise, and unique enough so as not to remind viewers of anything else / or get me sued. So, I have come up with this stylised N-logo. It'll feature on the front page of the site, over the still background, or slide show (which I've just switched on, btw).
I kinda like it, although I can already feel other potential logo ideas beginning to percolate in the back of my brain. But, for now,...
This rather incredible iguana originally hails from the tiny island of Utila, near Honduras. My research tells me that they are critically endangered, and that a number of zoos around the world are actively looking to breed them, to keep the species from getting any closer to extinction. I believe that London Zoo is the only place outside of this reptile's natural habitat to successfully get the animals to breed.
Photo details as follows:
Focal Length: 60mm
Aperture: f/2.8
Shutter Speed: 1/160
ISO: 1600
The aspect of this particular...
This delightful looking snake is a red-tailed rat snake, again taken during my recent zoo trip. These snakes are a particular favourite of mine to shoot, as they always pose well for the camera.
The data on the shot itself is as follows:
Focal Length: 60mm
Aperture: f/2.8
Shutter Speed: 1/30
ISO: 1600
I shot this one hand-held, and was very pleased with the sharpness around the snake's head. A bit of post-processing in Aperture & Photoshop allowed me to add a slightly darker tone to the overall image.
As ever. there is a larger version in the...
